Construction work for a 1,600 MW thermal power plant in Chhattisgarh to be set up by the Karnataka Power Corp Ltd (KPCL) will begin towards the end of this year, a Chhattisgarh official said Tuesday.

The Karnataka government had signed the deal with Chhattisgarh in September 2008 to build two units, each of 800 MW, at Godhna in Janjgir-Champa district. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rules both states.

The KPCL project is said to help Karnataka get over a widening power deficit.

'The KPCL has begun the process of taking over 1,260 acres land for the plant and we expect that acquisition process to be over within six months. The construction will begin by year-end,' the industry department official told IANS.

The official said more than 50 percent manpower for this plant will be recruited from Chhattisgarh and thus help create employment opportunities for people in the state.